Citi Shareholders Revolt, to Little Effect

Citigroup shareholders descended on its annual meeting Tuesday, but had little effect advancing their agenda at the beleaguered bank.

Angry shareholders descended on Citigroup's ( C) shareholder meeting on Tuesday, but had little effect advancing their agenda at the beleaguered bank.

Citi attempted to appease the roughly 1,500 angry shareholders that attended its annual meeting at a hotel in midtown Manhattan by saying the forum would be more shareholder-friendly.

Chairman Richard Parsons, who moderated the meeting, said the nine shareholder-led proposals would be discussed before the management proposals, to promote the fact that it was a shareholders meeting, first-and-foremost, and in an attempt to prioritize investor concerns.

The company also set up a help-desk for shareholders who had any personal problems regarding business with the company.

But while shareholders were able to vent their frustration to management and directors of a company that has seen its share price drop from a high of more than $50 a share at the end of 2006 to barely $3 a share today, shareholders sounding off -- not to mention several outbursts -- at the meeting did little to win support for any of the shareholder proposals.

Of the nine proposals offered by shareholders, all were rejected, according to preliminary results announced later in the meeting. Still, two proposals were rejected by just a mere few percentage points.

Citi's directors, which includes CEO Vikram Pandit, won reelection with an affirmation between 70% and 90%, the company said.

One shareholder voiced the opinion of many, when he said he voted against all the directors this year and specifically asked whether it really mattered.